Mortal Guardian
by Mysterie1985
Summary: This is how things are. It's not all what many dream of...
1. Chapter 1

What do you think of when you hear the words "Mortal Guardian" ?

Do you think about the Guardians of Childhood from the books or the movie? Do you think that being one includes using some power like Jack Frost does or even great battles with sabers like North? Maybe you don't think that at all, but think of maybe battling foes like Pitch Black? Of saving children from Nightmares or other such threats? Of being immortal? That this is just a story for your amusement?

If your answer to **any** the above is yes. You're in the wrong place.

I'm not here to fulfill a bunch of dreams or any such bull. I'm here to tell you the truth. You heard me right. First off let's get one thing straight. I'm not going to tell you who I am, where I live or anything really personal about myself because let's face it, you could care less. If you're still reading by this point then congratulations, you obviously want to know what it really means to be a Mortal Guardian.

That's what I am. Yeah, I'm for real. I know that putting the truth here means it won't likely be believed, but considering this is the best place to find others who actually believe... Well, it's probably my best bet. No one would believe my story to be real, after all, if I tried convincing those who aren't open to the "impossible" and who better to know what the impossible can bring than those who believe in the Guardians?

I'll be frank right now. What I have to say isn't for the weak hearted. I can't put details, but then again most of you aren't going to want to know the gory details of all of what I've seen and experienced.

If you've gotten this far and you still want to know... well, maybe you're right to join the ranks of the Mortal Guardians. I will give you this warning though, it's not all fun &amp; games and it's certainly not as clean in terms of fights as what you might have read about Pitch or even saw in the movie. That's kid stuff compared to the work I do. Yeah, you heard me right.

See, Mortal Guardians aren't kids. We also didn't choose to be Guardians. You can't just choose this sort of thing, it's what you're born into. You were chosen. Still want to know?

Don't say I didn't warn you.

First thing I'll do is tell you the good news - The Guardians ARE indeed real, but see they are exactly what you think, a first line of defense against enemies like Pitch Black. They are the first ones to protect children when it comes to things like him, but there are worse things in this world. Things that are beyond their ability to do anything about, after all... they can only protect those who believe in them and after a certain time, most kids will stop believing.

So, what makes Mortal Guardians special? That might be a question you'd come up with. Well, it's who we are behind closed doors. Our true purpose deals with the older kids and adults. Yeah... we protect those the Guardians can't, but it doesn't stop there because we also protect the children who don't believe in the Guardians. Children who face things that would make your toes curl in disgust that they face that sort of life. We're not just special that way though either, see, we don't need to believe in the Guardians to be a Mortal Guardian. In fact there are plenty of us who are Mortal Guardians who write off the Guardians of Childhood as just what most of you would write this off as - as something to be entertainment. To them there is no such thing as the Boogeyman, that fearing the dark is just something they grow out of as they get older; that there's no real reason to fear going to sleep.

Yeah, I know, dreams are Sandy's thing, but he only deals with the dreams of children and can only effect those who believe in the Guardians anyway. His good dreams for those who are older or don't believe aren't as strong in terms of fending off Nightmares and other horrors that can cause nightmares (i.e. bad dreams that aren't Nightmares). That's where I and others like me come in.


	2. Chapter 2

So, I've already gotten one review that says I make this seem real... kinda sad really.

Not the person or the review really, but that whoever it is (since they were just a guest) seems to think this isn't real... thing is. it is.

I said from the start it was... but sadly there will always be those who merely take it at what they think it is and not what is truth. Even my knowing this makes me a little sad.

I should also point out that I'm _not_ **THE **Guardian of Dreams, that's Sandy's job. Dreams is not what my center is.

Yeah... I have one... at least I feel like I do. Can't really say I can describe how I "feel" like I have a center, I just kinda... do. Anyway... I figure there are multiple things that could be my center. I'm not really sure what it really is though.

I am a strong believer... so maybe it's belief. I'd say it's love... but that's Cupid's area. Wishes maybe? Or perhaps bravery... Again... I don't know. I'm just guessing here based on what I know of myself. It could be even something I haven't ever thought of, or would consider as a center.

Since I'm still alive, of course, it doesn't matter all that much what my center is. Speaking of centers, all those who are like me have them. What it is will be different for each person. No two individuals have the same exact center... at least not at the same time I think...

I don't really know too much about how centers work... Okay, fine, I'm guessing at this point. It sounded good though right? I deal in the logical... to a point.

I obviously don't deal in pure logic if I believe in the Guardians. I mean, science could spend forever disproving the existence of the Guardians and disbelief is all around. It's sad to see it, I see it every time I go to work.

I guess I should mention I mean my regular job. My job as a Guardian is one I've only shared with one other person, turns out he's one too. Worked out great for me... to others... I caution you on who you tell.

Disbelief and skepticism is so strong in the world that there can be violent or crippling consequences to telling the wrong person you're a Guardian.

Most people don't believe you, unless they're another Guardian or happen to have it proved to them. That's another thing that bites about my job as a Guardian. It's easy to prove something if you have physical proof... but how do you prove what I do if you have no proof?

I mean, Sandy has dream sand, but the darn stuff never sticks around and I certainly can't control it like he does... I mean, I can change a dream from a Nightmare to a happy dream and visa versa (learned that by accident) but that's about it. I can't create the stuff so proving that I work with Dreams is like proving to people in the 5th century that the world isn't flat.

I just can't do it. I can only tell people, hope that they'll have an open enough mind to believe what I tell them rather than just passing it off as me lying or making up some story.

Dreams aren't as safe as everyone likes them to believe, most dreams are just that - dreams - but they are more than just that sometimes. Dreams can tell us things, provide information that we might not have any other way of knowing (like glimpses of the future), it's also a gateway into a place beyond physical reach.

When dreams become a gateway... that's when they become dangerous and that's where I come in. The world they lead to houses a lot of spirits, mostly good of course, but there's still plenty of danger because someone who doesn't know how to protect themselves can find out that a cut in that world can mean a cut on their physical bodies.

Ever heard of people dying in their sleep for no apparent reason? Well, there's the reason. Those who have been put into comas spend time there too. See you can die in that other world, but it's not like our world (for the sake of just defining the two let's call it "physical").

In the physical world, you would feel the pain and then fuss over it constantly. In that world, you might feel pain and then forget about it in the blink of an eye. Only a truly trained mind can suffer a deadly wound in that world and come back from it without a scratch on them.

So, then you probably want to know how to know when you're in that world, right? Well, professionals have a term for it. Lucid dreaming.

Problem is, not everyone can tell when they're having a lucid dream or not. It takes practice and experience to be able to tell when you're in a lucid dream. It takes just as much, if not more practice, to be able to manipulate the dream. Granted, everyone has the power to manipulate their own dreams, but it takes someone special - again, like me - to be able to do the same for someone else.

I am not going to even try and explain how to do that. One, because it doesn't need to be falling into the wrong hands, and two, one of the restrictions of my job is that I know how to do everything while I'm in that place, but in the physical world a lot of that information is blocked from my mind.

An example would be the use of my weapon of choice. I can use any number of weapons, but for the sake of this example I'll just pick the first weapon I'd chosen to use. A set of daggers. I am a deadly artisan when it comes to the daggers, but only there. In the physical world, I'd probably end up missing my target more often than not just because I don't have the training here in this world. I can't ask my physical body to do something it has never done before, even if my form from the spirit world can do it without hesitation. The two simply aren't that closely linked. Not to mention that my physical body doesn't have all the advantages of my other form.

I could go on and on, but that's not something I want to rant about, nor does everyone need to hear it. It's not that relevant beyond making the point.

I'll close this out with something that every Mortal Guardian needs to remember: **Believing is seeing**


	3. December 10th, 2015

The hardest part about being a Mortal Guardian isn't the job itself really. It's keeping things a secret.

You see, if anyone knew about us... the few of us who are Mortal Guardians... if we tried to tell them the truth we would most likely find ourselves locked up for being insane. For believing in "things that don't exist" we would have our loved ones hounding us about our sanity even if we managed to keep from being locked up.

Perhaps one of the worst things, I think, is the most recent development. I don't know if it's because I understand him or what, but I am worried for the youngest Guardian. Three years ago his story was told, the amount of believers spiked which was great... but all things considered, by the time the story came out there's a good chance that the real believer who saved us all is getting dangerously close to that age where he will no longer believe.

I haven't seen him for myself, but it's just a feeling that I have. Something in the air that just doesn't feel quite right and not in the sense that something awful is going to happen, but in the sense that hurt and heartbreak is prevalent in the air. To be quite honest, there's no way for me to know when he truly got his first believer. It obviously wasn't three years ago. I would have noticed something like that. I doubt he would speak of it even if I did see him.

It's not really in his character to talk about things that bother him... he is the Guardian of Fun after all. He wouldn't want to spoil anyone's fun or happy day... but what about his day? I can't help but feel worry for him. Even for all the believers that he may yet still have now. My mind is now coming up with the worst possibilities as I write this. I hope that I might gain some answers... but I am not banking on it. I have tasted his snow... but it has only come twice so far this year and it is about two weeks until Christmas. Last year was lax in snow too... I wonder if maybe something actually happened the year before that I just missed...

It's almost heartbreaking to think about really... but I have to be strong... for his sake. Even if he never comes talk to me, I will not let belief in him or the other Guardians fade so long as I draw breath. I wouldn't be much of a Guardian myself if I did.


	4. Chapter 4

I never did talk with Jack... but I did receive a rather unexpected visit from Sandy in a dream. It was a little amusing rather and though I barely recall anything of it besides the Dreamweaver's hasty departure I believe that my words to Jack have certainly not gone unnoticed.

Perhaps he's really listening to what I have to say, although of course I'm just talking to the wind, but Jack has never been one to disappoint when I have truly wished in my heart to have snow. He has never failed me. I know he never will.

If you do believe me, believe that this isn't just some story I'm making up then perhaps you will believe that I suspect Jack followed me around when I was younger. That, he saw in me a bit of himself because he saw how lonely I was... How I longed to have friends but really didn't have them. Not even the neighborhood kids would come to play with me.

I recall, one winter, when I was still very young... that I glanced over my shoulder at the fence of my backyard. I swore I felt someone watching me though there was no one there as I was playing in the snow itself on my own while my father had gone back inside after helping me build a snowman. I went inside too shortly after since I was very cold, but I felt the whole time that someone had been looking after me. In fact, I'd had the distinct impression someone had been sitting on that fence, watching. I imagine that perhaps that was Jack. One thing that never failed, if I didn't get snow on Christmas, it happened to snow on my birthday.

I've always thought this rather peculiar really. What are the chances of it always snowing on my birthday when I didn't have a white Christmas? I think that Jack has always known that I have loved his snow. Winter may not have always been my favorite season, but it was usually then that I was the happiest out of the year. I could always find ways to admire the snow as I waited for the night of Christmas, which has always been my favorite holiday though the reasons for that - of course - have changed as I have grown.

I have begun to fear though that the years are beginning to weigh on me and using my powers in dreams drains me far more than it ever used to. I am getting old. My chosen one protests, but it is a simple fact. I am unsure of how much longer I can be the Guardian I was chosen to be as surely there will be a time when I shall pass from this life. Whether I become a spirit like Jack or move on to the next life is something I do not know. After all, it takes something very special to warrant being a Guardian and not everyone has it.

My wish is that my stories which will out last this mortal body shall live on and spark belief in new believers. That these few passages I leave of my existence under this title may yet be believed and someone will come to realize that this whole time I have simply been writing the truth.

The Guardians exist. Perhaps not exactly as envisioned by the writer William Joyce or the artist at Dreamworks who created the movie about Jack Frost's rise to the rank of Guardian. They do exist though. They have always been around to safe guard us from what we cannot always understand or imagine. I have not met or seen the other Guardians, but I do know Sandy is definitely taller and less round in person than he is in the movie.

I leave off this particular passage with this: No matter what anyone says, hold on to your beliefs, your hopes, your dreams. They are all that anyone may possess that cannot be taken away by any means of force. They can only be broken or taken if we allow them to be.


End file.
